Siemens previews House of Innovations connected household at IFA 2012

What would a trade show be without a “The (BLANK) of Tomorrow” display? They’re always a good way of showing off what a company is working on, in a simulated real-world setting. One such exhibit at IFA 2012 will be Siemens’ House of Innovations. The 70 square-meter (753.5 sq-ft) display illustrates how technologies such as augmented reality and internet connectivity may soon start transforming our households.

What's in the fridge?

According to Siemens, one thing that we may be able to do before too long is check the contents of our refrigerator remotely, via a smartphone or tablet app. This would work with a camera in the fridge, which would display the fridge’s contents on the user’s mobile device. The user could then touch a series of individual food items on the screen, as a way of asking “What could I cook with these?”. The app would respond by supplying appropriate recipes.

When the user selected one of those recipes, a shopping list of ingredients would then appear – presumably the person wouldn’t already have everything required. They could then purchase the necessary items while they were still out and about, instead of having to go out again after returning home.

As is the case with some already-available systems, the apps could also be used to remotely start and stop appliances in the kitchen and elsewhere, and to monitor their status.

Hands-on cooking

Once the hypothetical user got home and was ready to start cooking, the recipe instructions would be projected onto the

food preparation surface as a multi-touch display. When the user got to the point where they were instructed to “Put the meat in the oven” (the example provided), their touching of that command on the projection would cause the oven to come on at the desired temperature.

Using such a recipe display would allow users to keep their fingers goopy with ingredients, as they wouldn’t have to worry about messing up their smartphone or tablet (or, God forbid, their cookbook).

Energy management

As we turn more and more toward alternative energy sources, Siemens anticipates that we’ll need a way of knowing when to use them. To that end, one of the features of the House of Innovations is a system that tracks the position of the sun. An interface then lets the user know at what times of the day the solar gain will be the highest – the more sunlight available, the better for running major appliances.

Let me show you ...

Should one of those appliances break down or simply require maintenance, the user could once again whip out their mobile device. Using an augmented reality app, they would then point the device’s camera at the appliance in question. Overlaid on top of the live image of the appliance would be three-dimensional graphics illustrating how to fix or service it.

The app could also be used to allow off-site technicians to electronically access users’ appliances (with their permission), or to guide them through procedures via live chat.

When we can expect it

So, will this be like a lot of these kind of displays, where the things on show are pie-in-the-sky concepts that will never see the light of day? According to Siemens, the answer is no. “In about two years, we will be able to implement aspects of this scenario by bringing the first correspondingly equipped appliances to the market,” said Sonja Ehmer, the company’s Head of Marketing. “Reactions to the House of Innovations at the IFA will also bring us a step closer to our goals.”